Don't Help the Autocrat Do His Work
Authoritarians consolidate power by psychological means as much as any other. Fear, anxiety, and cynicism are some of their most potent tools. They manufacture cycles of distraction and panic in which people react instinctively out of fear, anxiety, or cynicism rather than thoughtful self-interest.
How can we regain balance in those circumstances? Ask what the autocrat wants, what would benefit him.
Does it benefit the autocrat to normalize the idea that elections depend on media theater rather than meaningful governance? Yes.
Does it benefit the autocrat to get people expending their time and energy arguing over media fictions and opinion polls rather than using that time and energy in constructive political participation? Yes.
Does it benefit the autocrat to get people questioning the fitness and viability of their chosen political candidate? Yes.
Does it benefit the autocrat to make people forget that their candidate is a source of electoral strength rather than weakness? Yes.
Does it benefit the autocrat to get people within a successful democratic coalition to consider selecting a new candidate and potentially abandoning a previously successful strategy? Yes.
Does it benefit the autocrat to get people always thinking and worrying about him, how he might win and what he might do, rather than thinking and doing for one’s self and others? Yes.
Ask what benefits the autocrat, what he wants. Then do the opposite.